​Designing a successful website for a small business may not be as simple as some people may think. Even though a website owner may create the perfect design, there is still a lot more to driving paying customers to the site. One of the most important is creating an effective SEO campaign that will rank the site in the #1 spot without fail.To achieve these results, site owners must deploy a plan that will improve their rankings without being penalized. With that being said, here are some do's and don'ts that can assist small business owners with getting the best results.

Google publishes a lot of information today on how to rank at the top of this major search engine, and it is available to any site owner who wants access to it. The information that is supplied explains how the algorithm and specifically pagerank are designed and what it is looking for in an SEO optimized site. Therefore, when people follow what Google does as they make changes and updates, they will know how their sites should be modified and updated too. For instance, recently ﻿Google﻿ communicated a huge initiative across the web that required all site owners to make mobile friendly sites. As a result of these changes, mobile friendly sites are now the norm, and also selected by Google Algorithm’s as the top ranking spots. Unfortunately, those sites that did not comply begin lose their long records of high rankings immediately, even big businesses when they lagged behind.

#2 - Incorporate Engaging Content With Targeted Industry Keywords

Engaging content can be described as content that will not only keep the readers attention, but will also add value. Therefore, the site owner will need to post articles, videos, graphics and other things on the site that’s beneficial to the lives of their customers, clients, potential consumers and community members. Typically, this content is focused on the needs of the consumer and not on the business itself.

In addition to capturing this target audiences attention and keeping them as returning customers, the site owner will need to focus on incorporating the best industry keywords and keyword phrases. In particular, the top industry specific niche keywords and keyword phrases that pushes a site over the rankings of others in the same or similar industry.

#3 - Provide a Great Mobile Friendly User Experience

If the site is going to achieve high rankings in the search engine, the developers must provide visitors with a great mobile friendly user experience. In order to see if the site will meet these specifications, the owner will need to focus on the following:

- How attractive is the site on all mobile device?

- Is it easy and simple for the users to navigate from one place to another.

- Is the Site Secure Enough for potential customers to do business.

- Is the data on the mobile site the same or similar to the desktop versions without the user interface being difficult to view?

All of which are significants parts of adhering to google standards and requirements of mobile friendly sites.

#4. Do not Use Black Hat SEO Techniques

The number one spots on Google’s search engine are coveted places by businesses all over the globe. Because the high visibility usually equates to dollars and cents, some companies will do virtually anything to take these spots. Fortunately, Google’s algorithm is designed to distinguish between ethical and fair techniques and those that are meant to go around them. Simply stated, Google recognizes sites that use White Hat (ethical and quality measures) and Black Hat (deceptive manipulative techniques) to improve their rankings. Once the two are identified, Google’s algorithm will either reward and boost a sites ranking or penalize the site for manipulation. Therefore, it is very important for site owners to know the distinctions between each before they incorporate them into their site’s SEO marketing campaign. Here’s a few of the most common manipulation techniques that all site owners’s must be familiar with when managing their campaigns.

- Hidden text

- Cloaking

- Blog Comment Spam

5. Make an Assessment of Site’s SEO Ranking

To optimize a website for major search engines like Google, the site owner and their representatives should start by assessing the sites’ present SEO ranking. It does not matter whether the ranking is low or high, the person that is responsible for the site must know where the ranking stands at all times. Fortunately, there are a numerous tools that can be used to check what is going on the in the background. Ideally, you should be using a good small business seo service that will assist you with finding out where your site currently ranks throughout search engines. These services are great for reviewing a wide variety of different factors including, the speed of the site, average monthly search, and where the site ranks for the term.

6. Avoid Keyword Stuffing

Finding the right keywords for a specific business is idea for improving the ranking in any SEO campaign. Therefore, site owners will do virtually anything to find the best keywords for their specific business and their industry. Once found, the next step is to use these terms correctly. Fortunately, there are guidelines online that show how keywords and keywords should be used. For instance, in some cases, the guidelines may recommend that site owners only use a keyword density of 1% to 2% and no more so that the search engines can pick the terms up to complete a relevant search. Following these recommendations are much more likely to achieve the best results.

On the other hand, if the site owner has identified the best keywords and keyword phrases but does not know how to use them correctly, they may be penalized by the search engine. Particularly, when the keyword density is exceptionally higher than the prescribed limits. In these situations, the site may be penalized for keyword stuffing and their ranking may begin to fall.

7. Keep up-to-date with Google’s and Other Major Search Engines Algorithm Changes

If small business owners want to make sure that their sites stay in a high ranking position, it is very important that they keep up with the major search engines and the associated algorithms. These algorithms have a major impact on well each site performs. Just like new operating systems are rolled out from major companies like Microsoft, Google has names that identify when huge changes come down the pike too. Some of the more notable in the past have the following names.